Epson Expression Home XP-410 Pro Reviews

I have to say I was disappointed with the Epson Expression Home XP-410. There are zero improvements on the previous generation Epson Expression Home XP-400 we reviewed last year. The design, print speeds and features are identical and I actually had more trouble with the photo printing on the XP-410. And don't be surprised if you spend quadruple the initial cost ($99.99) on ink in the first year with a set of high capacity cartridges running around $80.96. The Expression Home XP-410 isn't a terrible printer; in fact it did a pretty good job during most of our tests but if you already own the Expression Home XP-400 (or a printer like it) it won't be worth the upgrade.

The XP-410 is targeted at the home user who might also run a small, home-based business. It can produce excellent images with the right paper, works well for crafts, and is great for printing school and business reports. Print speeds are very good, as is the price. There’s no fax capability or ADF, but given the reasonable cost and target user, we don’t see this as a big deal. There are a few things we wish it did better, such as image quality on standard office quality paper and better ink yields from the ink cartridges. But for the price, the XP-410 is a very good value.

The Epson Expression Home XP-410 Small-in-One delivers better-quality text than expected for a home printer, along with more typical graphics and photo quality.

As an under-$100 printer, the Expression Home XP-410 Small-in-One has a lot going for it. It prints great-looking documents and photographs at respectable speeds, and it’s small, light, and easy to set up and use. Granted, we’d like to see an ADF and a duplexer for printing unassisted two-sided pages, but we don’t consider their absence a deal-breaker in this price range. However, if you need these features, several other comparably priced AIOs can accommodate you. What does give us great pause, though, is the XP-410’s off-the-chart CPPs. Black-and-white pages for 5.4 cents and color pages for 17.5 cents is, well, just too much. Paying this much for your output makes sense to us only if you print very little—say, perhaps, you’re a home-office user or student who just needs an occasional-use machine. Admittedly, this AIO’s CPPs are not that far out of line with a few competing models', which makes them occasional-use machines, too. As we’ve said many times, if you print infrequently, a lower-cost printer with high-cost inks won’t matter—you won’t use the inks enough to notice. If you print a lot, though, spend the extra up front for a higher-end, higher-volume printer. You’ll be surprised at how fast you recoup the extra cash.

The Epson Expression Home XP-410 Small-in-One will suffice for light home/student use. The print quality is surprisingly good, but ironically, the pricey inks mean you shouldn't buy this machine unless you don't print much.